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Topic: Nov 5th in UK? (Read 4895 times)

I was just listening to a past episode of TNS and heard a caller say that there might be some background noise because his neighbor was setting off fireworks for November 5th. If this is some historical holiday, please forgive my ignorance for I am for the US. But what is November 5th and why fireworks?

paul.fr

November the 5th is better known as bonfire night, a special time of year when we celebrate (with big parties, fireworks, etc) hanging catholics.

ooh, that's not right is it.

In 1605, thirteen young men planned to blow upthe Houses of Parliament. Among them wasGuy Fawkes, Britain's most notorious traitor.

After Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603, English Catholics who had been persecuted under her rule had hoped that her successor, James I, would be more tolerant of their religion. James I had, after all, had a Catholic mother. Unfortunately, James did not turn out to be more tolerant than Elizabeth and a number of young men, 13 to be exact, decided that violent action was the answer.

A small group took shape, under the leadership of Robert Catesby. Catesby felt that violent action was warranted. Indeed, the thing to do was to blow up the Houses of Parliament. In doing so, they would kill the King, maybe even the Prince of Wales, and the Members of Parliament who were making life difficult for the Catholics. Today these conspirators would be known as extremists, or terrorists.

To carry out their plan, the conspirators got hold of 36 barrels of gunpowder - and stored them in a cellar, just under the House of Lords.

But as the group worked on the plot, it became clear that innocent people would be hurt or killed in the attack, including some people who even fought for more rights for Catholics. Some of the plotters started having second thoughts. One of the group members even sent an anonymous letter warning his friend, Lord Monteagle, to stay away from the Parliament on November 5th. Was the letter real?

The warning letter reached the King, and the King's forces made plans to stop the conspirators.

Guy Fawkes, who was in the cellar of the parliament with the 36 barrels of gunpowder when the authorities stormed it in the early hours of November 5th, was caught, tortured and executed.

It's unclear if the conspirators would ever have been able to pull off their plan to blow up the Parliament even if they had not been betrayed. Some have suggested that the gunpowder itself was so old as to be useless. Since Guy Fawkes and the other conspirators got caught before trying to ignite the powder, we'll never know for certain.

Even for the period which was notoriously unstable, the Gunpowder Plot struck a very profound chord for the people of England. In fact, even today, the reigning monarch only enters the Parliament once a year, on what is called "the State Opening of Parliament". Prior to the Opening, and according to custom, the Yeomen of the Guard search the cellars of the Palace of Westminster. Nowadays, the Queen and Parliament still observe this tradition.

On the very night that the Gunpowder Plot was foiled, on November 5th, 1605, bonfires were set alight to celebrate the safety of the King. Since then, November 5th has become known as Bonfire Night. The event is commemorated every year with fireworks and burning effigies of Guy Fawkes on a bonfire.

Some of the English have been known to wonder, in a tongue in cheek kind of way, whether they are celebrating Fawkes' execution or honoring his attempt to do away with the government.

another_someone

It is not a public holiday, but it is a historic 'celebration'. It is known as Guy Fawkes day. Guy Fawkes was one of a gang of what today would be classed as terrorists that in November 1695 tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament, and King James I (King James VI if you are Scottish). In typical British fashion, we celebrate his failure. Guy Fawkes (and his co-conspirators) were caught, and were sentenced to be hung drawn and quartered - although Guy Fawkes himself died on the gallows, so he never got to be drawn a quartered.

The whole plot was seen as a Catholic plot against the monarchy, but the irony is that 44 years later it was the Puritans who finally did kill the king (King Charles I, the son of James I).

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